The Vampire's Heart

by Breaker, Cochin

  “The sun will devour me. However, this body will survive to become a Lys-Karalis, and he will be instrumental in defeating those that need to be defeated. I do not know who they are. This is what I need you to do; go to the dimension of the Third Empire, it is a long time since I travelled there, but you will be safe there until your destiny finds you.”

  “What? My destiny? I don’t understand? Dimensions? What are you on about?”

  “Please believe me! We have to be quick. He will be growing suspicious.”

  “How is it even possible to go to another dimension?”

  “You must go to The Heart. Underneath the lake is a stone circle that can be used with your magic. You will understand with time.” He smiles again.

  I sit bolt upright, covered in sweat. My hair is plastered to my face and neck. My chest is heaving and my mind is reeling. I’ve had that dream every night since Kellum spared me, and now, as I near my destination, the Heart, it is lasting longer.

  In reality he had just touched my forehead while his magic had screamed, and then he’d told me to run. Perhaps the dreams are telling me what he would have said if he could. That seems to be the only conclusion I can draw.

  I get up and stuff the scabby furs back into the sac I managed to procure while passing quickly through Dinscuth. I’ve travelled constantly since we parted, keeping away from the big cities, and passing fleetingly through the small towns I have crossed. I’ve done my best to avoid people. I don’t want to hurt anymore people. My recent history hasn’t been great, and I know how ashamed I should be of it.

  My stomach growls ravenously, reminding me that I’ve not eaten in three days. The tough ball in my tummy is growing stronger, and I am losing far too much weight. I can keep my strength up with my magic, but that does not stop the hunger or the weight loss.

  Sighing, I shoulder the sac and begin to walk again, ever drawing closer to the Heart. I’m heading North East so as to join the River Wyd, and then I’ll be heading North East along its banks up to the Heart. By doing so I’m avoiding any difficult mountainous terrain, and hopefully any people.

  I’m close to our goal.

  - Muzbeth -

  I scramble up the white washed walls of the Lighthouse, digging my hardened nails into the stone bricks and the mortar holding them. Thousands of millions of flakes of white paint slowly fall to the ground beneath me. The building, though a conical structure, is effectively vertical thanks to its size. I’ve come up about a thousand feet, and I’m only about halfway. It is a wonder how this thing was ever built.

  I glance down, enhancing my vision with a tiny mote of magic. Summer is in the shadows, stalking an unsuspecting guard who has no idea either of us are here.

  Returning my attention to the wall, I continue climbing, steadily gaining height. The higher I climb the colder it gets. I’m sure that if I kept climbing I would be able to touch the blue sparks.

  The Light grows steadily bigger and more encompassing as I approach its edge. Now I’m so close I can see that it is actually set inside the Lighthouse. Part of the wall has been knocked away and the Light shines out from within.

  I climb a little further, and onto a stone floor. I guess technically I’m now inside the Lighthouse.

  The Light itself is actually a sphere, but surprisingly not that bright to look at. When it is seen in the sky at night it seems brighter because of the darkness surrounding it, but being inside the beam is exactly the same as normal daylight. The cavity in which the Light is situated is three floors deep, and inside that area it is constant daytime. I wonder if there is a giant shadow of me cast upon the Heart? That would be an impressive sight.

  I quickly leap up and out of the broad beam of light, latching once again onto the outside wall, and head the much shorter distance to the roof.

  I make the top of the tower with agility far beyond any human ability, swinging from a ledge to land silently on the rim of the smooth tiling, balanced perfectly. I take a step forward, approaching a small skylight that leads down into a dark chamber of the topmost floor, but something stops me.

  I smell an odour on the air; a recognised smell, pleasant, warming, familiar. A friend; Kellum! I reach out into the darkness with my senses. I locate my one time mentor; he is on the other side of the roof to me. But more noticeable is the fact that there are at least two-dozen vampires between him and myself.

  What is going on here? Is he going to tell me what he told the other Lys-Karalis? As I stand pondering, a voice drifts out from a shadowed recess. At first it is one voice, then as that voice finishes speaking, another takes up the reins of the speech. This method continues until my opponent steps out into the moon- and spark-light to face me, silvery blue and evidently angry.

  He is attempting to remove from me my status as a Lys-Karalis! Kellum stands against me! I think over what has just been said;

  “You are a monster,”

  “Unfit to be a vampire Lys-Karalis,”

  “Kellum-Herbst wishes to assume the title,”

  “We have allowed him to challenge you.”

  Kellum charges silently forward, his footfalls light on the tiles between us. He smoothly draws a pair of daggers as he runs. I do not move to intercept or to avoid; I am unthreatened by the fast approaching vampire who is intent on killing me.

  “The victor will remain hidden from the eye of Calcia,”

  “The defeated will be cast back into Hell when the sun rises.”

  “Born to lead the race of vampires to greatness,”

  “As all Lys-Karalis are, you have chosen damnation for us, and our kind, instead.”

  “Should Kellum-Herbst fail, we six Lys-Karalis will have no choice but to hunt you down and destroy you ourselves.”

  So there are seven of us, including myself, as Kellum said there were. Do they expect me, the true leader of the vampiric race, and founder of the Capital, to share my rule? If they do they are fools, and I will show that to them. But first I must teach old Kellum a lesson.

  Once he taught me, but now I am the master; this will be his first and last lesson. I duck back quickly as one of Kellum’s daggers skims my brow. Cold thick blood runs ever so slowly down my face. The second dagger is aimed at my gut, and a quick side-step avoids the contact. Kellum, not expecting the swift evasion, stumbles under the weight of his own thrust and in the moment of instability that catches him, I make my move. It will be the only one I need.

  I raise a fist and bring it down into Kellum’s back; it crunches through bone and crushes his insides. The cold of his internal organs feels glorious on my hand. He screams with frustration at his defeat and falls to the tiled rooftop, dark thick dead blood pools slowly beneath him.

  Victorious, I cast my gaze to the hidden Lys-Karalis that surround me, willing them to try and take me on! Nothing. There would be silence, if it were not for the howl of the wind.

  Then a single clap breaks the stillness, and then another, until a chorus of clapping hands fills the night. Turning on the spot, I see ten, twenty, maybe thirty vampires step out of the shadows. All clapping and cheering my victory over the wretch that tried to overthrow me! Finally they recognise me as their master and champion!

  Something strikes at my back, and an inch of bloodied bronze thrusts out of my breast. Kellum is still alive, and now I have a dagger through this dry and black heart of mine. Blood meets my lips, not the fresh human blood I love, but the bitter vampiric blood that I find the taste of so vile.

  Long forgotten memories flash through my mind; images of the woman I used to love, Elyse. The many faces of the many people I’ve killed or known. Pictures of Summer and the things we’ve done together. Still frames of when I first met Kellum deep in the sea to the north of Khorale.

  But of all those things, only one gives me the hatred to continue, to destroy those that have hurt me. Kellum is the reason, or more technically his betrayal is the reason.

  Kellum has set me up; made me a creature of the night, taught me to be the cold bloo
ded killer that my very nature dictates. And for all the trouble he went to, to set the other Lys-Karalis against me, revenge is all that plays on my mind. He will regret the day he found me.

  Turning my head, I see Kellum grinning at me. It is usual toothy smile, but it is soon to be broken. I step forward and slide painlessly off the blade, turn to face Kellum, and make a grab for the bloodied blade. I twist it easily from Kellum’s grip. His grin fades so quickly and a stunned look appears in its place. Is he surprised at the defiance of death in my eye, or that a single blow didn’t to kill me? He’s an idiot if it is the latter.

  A lightning fast jab to his stomach brings Kellum to his knees, and sends his second dagger skittering across the rooftop. I look down into his face and let out a roar of anger and hatred; it serves only to empower me and diminish his confidence. I throw the dagger to one side and do not hear it land.

  Gripping his mouth I force it open, shoving the fingers of my other hand into the dark chasm that houses his sharp teeth. Using my inhuman strength, I pry his jaw away from his skull; a dull crack sounds as the bone breaks.

  He begins to scream, showing his weakness. He is a vampire, he should not even feel pain. A second crack tells me the jawbone is completely free. I pull and hear his flesh tearing as the skin is ripped free of his face. I rip his jaw off completely, taking tongue, cheeks and a large chunk of throat with it. His screams become undecipherable.

  I lift the jawless Kellum up, looking into his eyes. I drop him and his jaw to the tiles and he just lies there, bloodied, and close to death. So close.

  I stand where he lies, covered in his dead blood. In the far distance, over the Gatheck Range, the sun begins its slow morning rise.

  Moments later dozens of vampires leave the rooftop, each leaping to the safety of the shadows by the walls; to the safety of darkness.

  Now only the seven Lys-Karalis remain, and one soon to be dead vampire.

  Now the real battle comes. I draw upon my remaining magic and prepare a spell to destroy demons, using the erstwhile angelic magic granted to me. I unleash it upon myself.

  My hands swarm with fire; engulfed by the flame I magically abjure. They catch fire quickly and the caressing flames begin to spread up my arms at an alarming rate. Instantly I cast again. The flesh of my arms starts to regenerate so fast it looks like my skin is living, black and undulating. It writhes between fire and fresh flesh. Soon, only my hands are on fire; the flames kept from spreading by my healing magic.

  I look up and react instantly as the other Lys-Karalis charge at me. One of them is just about to reach me. I lash out with my clawed and flaming hand at neck height. My decapitating blow sends his head falling to the roof. It lands, bounces, and rolls off the side to plummet the drop to the cobbles below, trailing bright flame all the while.

  My simple plan works perfectly; stop them being able to use their magic and burn them once they cannot heal themselves. I know this works because I just felt that Lys-Karalis die by my hand; he was my equal and I killed him without a thought. It was so easy. I never even knew his name. Not that I care. The rest will follow him to their deaths.

  Barely an instant after my first scything cut, I’m ducking a powerful left to right swing by a massive vampire. The muscles beneath his dead skin ripple in the moonlight as he flails his arms. I duck under his left arm and scythe my hand up into his ribs, pushing them aside, and letting the fire consume his insides. I grab a handful of anything and, while ripping it out, my other hand finds its way to his shocked face.

  I gouge an eye, hook his skull and drag his head down to smash his cranium on my knee. His caved in skull becomes engulfed by the flame quickly. Its ash begins to blow away in the wind as the two bodies burn hot and bright. I feel this one die too; one more of their number down. There are just the five of us now.

  Oddly enough, Kellum did a better job than they are doing. The third and fourth Lys-Karalis will attack me together. Both reach me ahead of the last two. They split and flank me. I turn to the largest of the pair and fend off a clawed hand, which was intended for my face, whilst I draw back my right arm to deliver a counter-strike.

  The Lys-Karalis behind me stabs, twists, and pulls free some sort of blade. I get the taste of vampiric blood in my mouth once again as my heart and lungs are further damaged. It is a good job I have no need of my insides.

  The Sixteenth Chapter

  - Alleil -

  13 days until the birth of a god

  The 20th day of Spring-Fall, 1538

  All I can do is watch and try and get there more quickly to help the others. All the while the demon in the back of my mind is laughing as the twisted and sick individual murders the people I care about. The deranged Lys-Karalis before me moves faster and more viciously that any I’ve ever seen, horribly dispatching Callic with a single blow, only then to take Morren in an even more callous and violent way.

  ‘They both deserved it. Neither of them could cut it. They were both weaker than us; we should have done what he is doing long ago. We should have ruled the vampires together,’ the demon inside my says, ever attempting to corrupt me. Thankfully the demons that inhabit we Lys-Karalis cannot vocalise via our physical bodies, so only I can hear Fel, just as only Liesl can hear his demon, and only Callic can... could hear his.

  But now is not the time, Fel. Just not now, I need to concentrate.

  Luc and I will be the next to tackle him, taking him on in tandem. I only hope that together we can take him out, and if not, I hope to the gods that we can at least hold him off for long enough for Revner and Liesl to join us.

  ‘Run away Alleil, this vampire will kill you,’ Fel tells me, breaking what little concentration I have.

  And if you keep distracting me we’ll both die.

  ‘I’ll go back to Hell. You’ll die.’

  You’ll go back to Hell. I’ll move on, I still have a soul. You Fel, you lost yours long ago when you fell from Heaven, I think at the demon that grants me my power.

  I head to the corrupt Lys-Karalis’ left hand side while Luc heads to its right. Muzbeth turns to face Luc, exposing his back to me.

  ‘Lucky you, you may survive this after all. Provided Luc dies. You could even turn against the others…’

  Fuck off Fel! I think, hoping to silence the insistent distraction.

  Luc lashes a clawed fist at the face of our enemy only to have it batted away by the vampire. I see Muzbeth’s arm pull back for a powerful blow and instinctively draw my knife and stick him with a twisting jab.

  But it has no effect on the creature before me, which punches out with his drawn back arm wreathed in flame. The blow was so powerful it must have been too fast to even dodge.

  A massive chunk of dead flesh, bone and brain matter is sheared from the side of Luc’s head, as the contents of his skull catch light.

  Those flames spread quickly over his falling corpse. Revner and Liesl won’t be able to help me now. The Lys-Karalis known as Muzbeth starts to turn to face me; all I can do is strike again with my knife. I feel Luc’s soul flit away from his body, moving swiftly onto the next place.

  ‘Feel that?’ Fel asks, though I know he does not mean the death of my fellow Lys-Karalis.

  Suddenly Muzbeth’s flames gutter out and the flesh of his hands and arms become blackened. The flesh practically drops from his bones and he enters an advanced stage of decay. His lips draw back to expose the vampire’s sharp yellowed teeth, while his nose shrinks to little more than two flat slits. His eyes whiten, though he will still see perfectly. This Lys-Karalis has run out of magic. Maybe I do stand a chance of surviving.

  I stab up into his side, sliding the knife under his bottom rib to connect sharply with his spine, which it cuts through, thanks to my vampiric strength.

  ‘My strength,’ Fel adds.

  Whatever.

  He turns his head to look directly at me; my attack has stopped him mid-turn. Muzbeth, obviously angered by his loss, roars into my face. His putrid rotting breath rolls over me
, before he quickly backhands me in the chest with a fist. It was so quick I didn’t even have a chance to avoid it.

  The blow has broken many ribs and launched me from the roof to fall the long distance to the cobbled floor at the base of the Lighthouse.

  As I fall I pass through the Light and cast my falling shadow across half of Gatheck. I have a seventeen hundred foot drop ahead of me. Manoeuvring my limbs I steer my body toward the slightly sloped wall of the Lighthouse; I crash into it and slow myself down dramatically.

  Seeing a chimney pot, I push away from the wall with my feet and cause myself to pirouette wildly, though I miss the out-jutting chimney. Steadying myself, I crash into the wall again, slowing my speed once more. As I impact against the white painted stone I feel and hear some of my bones break. I hit the wall once more before the ground rushes up to meet me after what can only have been little more than a moment of falling; ninety instants gone so quickly.

  I land heavily with a painful sounding crunch. I did not bother to cast anything protect from the landing; preferring to save my casting power for healing when I need it. I cast out with a tiny mite of magic, assessing my body and the state it is in. Information floods into my mind, and I immediately know what it all means.

  About thirty percent of the bones in my body have been broken, about fifty percent shattered, and the rest fractured. One of my eyes no longer works due to part of it being severed by a bone fragment. And all of my teeth are either broken or no longer attached.

  Not good, to say the least.

  ‘Too fucking right! I guess I’ll have to sort us out?’

  Yes, as per usual. I reach down into my magic, drawing it from the demon within me, who in turn gets his from Samael, his god.

  Being dead I do not feel pain, but the feeling of a severely broken body being repaired is truly an amazing feeling. To feel bones re-graft and click back into blissful harmony with the rest of your skeletal structure is simply divine. Not that my skeletal structure matters; I have no need for one. My body is powered by magic, allowing me to not depend too much on the physical aspect of my body. Also not being capable of dying from natural causes has its bonuses.